Abstract
BACKGROUND CONTEXT There has been a generic dictum in spine and musculoskeletal clinical research that 2 years follow-up is necessary for patient reported outcomes (PRO); however, the rationale for this duration is not evidence based. PURPOSE The purpose of this study is to determine the PRO follow-up time necessary to ensure that the effectiveness of a lumbar surgical intervention is adequately captured. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Using PROs from the Canadian Spine Outcomes and Research Network (CSORN) prospective database the time-course to recovery plateau after lumbar spine surgery was assessed. PATIENT SAMPLE The time-course to recovery plateau after lumbar spine surgery was assessed for lumbar disc herniation, degenerative spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis in 1,200 patients. OUTCOME MEASURES ODI, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) leg and back pain, and Short form (SF-12) mental and physical component summary (MCS/PCS) scores. METHODS Analysis of multicenter prospective clinical spine registry.One-way ANOVAs with post-hoc testing were used to compare the following standardized PROs at baseline, three, twelve, and twenty-four months postoperatively: RESULTS There were significant differences determined by one-way ANOVAs for all spine pathologies and specific PROs (p CONCLUSIONS Individual PROs after surgery for lumbar spine pathologies follow specific time-courses to plateaued recovery indicating a 2-year follow-up may not be required for all outcomes to be accurately assessed. Ultimately the clinical research question should dictate follow-up time and the outcome measure utilized, however there is now evidence to guide the specific duration of follow-up for each PRO.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call